


Seven Devils

by DutchInsanity



Category: SHINee, 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alternate Universe - Assassins & Hitmen, F/F, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-05
Updated: 2017-09-02
Packaged: 2018-11-09 04:29:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,251
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11096931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DutchInsanity/pseuds/DutchInsanity
Summary: The Devils are the most well known hit team worldwide.No one has seen their true identities and lived.They've never failed a job. They've never lost a fight.What happens when The Devils accept a job unlike any they've done before?





	1. Chapter 1

**2200 EST ~~> >~~Paris, France**

The popular casino owned by successful Italian con artist, Dante Del Monico was in the midst of a Friday night rush. Rich men in fancy suits, reeking of expensive cologne, sat around tables and gambled with those who had already lost more money than they could ever hope to pay back.Scantily dressed women sashayed through the crowd, clinging to the biggest winners they could find.

Scantily dressed women sashayed through the crowd, clinging to the biggest winners they could find.Loud cheers would break out every so often and mingle with the sound of chatter and the thudding music. Two men in fine suits sat at the bar, each holding an untouched drink and chatting idly.

Loud cheers would break out every so often and mingle with the sound of chatter and the thudding music. Two men in fine suits sat at the bar, each holding an untouched drink and chatting idly.

Jimin Park and Hoseok Jung. Both dressed to impress. Jimin, the younger of the two leant forward to whisper something in his friend's ear, his carefully dyed blonde hair lighting up his delicate features, a perfect contrast to his kind brown eyes. The silver rings in his ears glinted in the lights of the casino and cast rays of light onto his friend’s cheek when he moved in close.His companion sported dark orange hair that fit perfectly with his tanned skin and high cheekbones.

His companion sported dark orange hair that fit perfectly with his tanned skin and high cheekbones. Hoseok's dark eyes were hidden behind green contact lenses. His close-fitting grey suit accentuated his graceful moves and his slim figure.The two looked away from each other as another man joined them. The three exchanged greetings and the third man took a seat with his friends and faced the room. Annoyed blue eyes scanned the crowd of hopefuls with a calculating look. Like his friend, the man wore coloured contact lenses to hide his true eye colour. Brown hair, styled to perfection, did well to accentuate the handsome face of Taehyung Kim.

The two looked away from each other as another man joined them. The three exchanged greetings and the third man took a seat with his friends and faced the room. Annoyed blue eyes scanned the crowd of hopefuls with a calculating look. Like his friend, the man wore coloured contact lenses to hide his true eye colour. Brown hair, styled to perfection, did well to accentuate the handsome face of Taehyung Kim.An Italian man in his late forties and wearing an expensive white suit walked past the bar and, as if they'd rehearsed it, the three men left their seats to trail after Dante Del Monico as he pushed his way through the crowd.

An Italian man in his late forties and wearing an expensive white suit walked past the bar and, as if they'd rehearsed it, the three men left their seats to trail after Dante Del Monico as he pushed his way through the crowd.Dante's followers weaved gracefully through the drunken gamblers. The three of them gently slipping past couples and large groups of cheerful people, remaining undetected as they followed the con artist across the casino floor.

Dante's followers weaved gracefully through the drunken gamblers. The three of them gently slipping past couples and large groups of cheerful people, remaining undetected as they followed the con artist across the casino floor.The Italian man reached a side door and ducked through it with his followers only seconds behind.

The Italian man reached a side door and ducked through it with his followers only seconds behind.Once the door shut all the noises of the casino faded into a dim murmur. The three men found themselves in a hallway with white walls and grey carpeted floors.

Once the door shut all the noises of the casino faded into a dim murmur. The three men found themselves in a hallway with white walls and grey carpeted floors."Dante Del Monico," Taehyung called with a voice like honey. The con artist stopped halfway down the hall and turned to face the men who were still walking towards him.

"Dante Del Monico," Taehyung called with a voice like honey. The con artist stopped halfway down the hall and turned to face the men who were still walking towards him."This is a restricted area." Dante menacingly said. "You should leave before I call security."

"This is a restricted area." Dante menacingly said. "You should leave before I call security."

Jimin, Hoseok and Taehyung stopped walking and stood in a perfect line, all three of them as beautiful and terrible as avenging angels."Your time has come,"

"Your time has come," Jimin said in a sweet voice. "The Devils have arrived."Dante's eyes widened and he took a step back only to collide with a strong chest.

Dante's eyes widened and he took a step back only to collide with a strong chest.A young man, only 19 years old and with a face like an angel had come up behind the Italian man unnoticed. His black eyes twinkled beneath his fluffy brown hair as he looked down at Dante. He wore a black security guard’s uniform that made his tanned skin look almost white.

A young man, only 19 years old and with a face like an angel had come up behind the Italian man unnoticed. His black eyes twinkled beneath his fluffy brown hair as he looked down at Dante. He wore a black security guard’s uniform that made his tanned skin look almost white.“George! Thank goodness, remove these men at once.” Dante commanded of his companion. When the tall man made no move to oppose the three men, the last of them spoke.

“George! Thank goodness, remove these men at once.” Dante commanded of his companion. When the tall man made no move to oppose the three men, the last of them spoke.

"The Jaccouds have asked for your head, we are here to deliver." Hoseok said.

"You tell those French scum that I had nothing to do with that Dubai heist!" Dante snapped. "Whatever they're paying you, I'll dou-" His final words were cut off with a flick of the security guard’s wrist.A knife had sliced cleanly through his neck and the body dropped to the floor. The Italian's head rolled until it fetched up at

A knife had sliced cleanly through his neck and the body dropped to the floor. The Italian's head rolled until it fetched up at Jimin's foot."Ugh." The blonde made a disgusted face and nudged the head away. "Another good pair of shoes ruined."

"Ugh." The blonde made a disgusted face and nudged the head away. "Another good pair of shoes ruined."The guard snickered as he pulled a small business card from an inside pocket of his jacket and dropped it on top of the body.

The guard snickered as he pulled a small business card from an inside pocket of his jacket and dropped it on top of the body."Kook, where's

"Kook, where's Rapmon." Hoseok asked, handing a silk handkerchief to Jimin so the younger man could clean his shoes. "He was supposed to be with you."

"Security here is better than we expected, they cut Mon off at the loading bay so we have to resort to plan B."Taehyung sighed sadly. "Such a shame, I really liked this jacket."

Taehyung sighed sadly. "Such a shame, I really liked this jacket."

" _Yah, hurry it up._ " Suga's voice crackled through the four's earpieces. " _You only have five minutes to evacuate before we go kaboom._ "

The four men started stripping off their attire, revealing their croupier's uniforms underneath. The abandoned clothes were left in a heap on the floor. Hoseok dropped a lit match on the clothing and the flammable fabric sprung to flames.

“Suga,” Jimin said, hand on his earpiece. “It’s lit.”

“ _I see it, get ready to move in exactly eight seconds_.”

The four straightened out their clothes and stood patiently at the door leading back out into the casino. The fire behind them blazed out of control and waves of heat battered the backs of the men yet not one of them moved a muscle.

“ _Go_.”

The door swung open and the four calmly walked back out into the casino floor. They split up, each making their own way to the main exit.

It wasn't long before a loud explosion drowned out the thudding music which was soon replaced with the familiar screams of panic and the high-pitched wailing of a fire alarm.  
People raced for the nearest exit. Glasses smashed, spilling drinks all over the casino floor, as their owners dropped them to the floor in a desperate attempt to get away from danger. People pushed and shoved, not caring who they trampled or knocked down. Somewhere a table was thrown over, a man was desperately grabbing his night's winnings and others were throwing all they'd won into the crowd, valuing their lives more than wealth.

In all the chaos, no one noticed the four men disappearing into the night.


	2. Chapter 2

**1200 EST ~~> >~~Paris, France**

 Jungkook led his friends down the silent hallway, their footsteps muffled by the thick black carpet until they reached the right room. Hotel hallways always looked so generic to Jungkook. Always the same sound proof carpets and boring walls. Though he had to admit, this was the nicest place they'd stayed in for almost two months; the whole building screamed luxury, something The Devils were more than accustomed to.

When they reached their room Taehyung unlocked the door to reveal a large loft.

The floors were polished grey stone with bland white walls and vaulted white ceilings. The furniture consisted mostly of leather couches and chairs in the same brown colours as the exposed wood beams that ran along the ceiling.  

Jungkook wrinkled his nose, he didn't like brown leather furniture, it just seemed wrong to him. Thankfully, most of the furniture was hidden due to the fact that almost every surface of the loft was covered in important documents and folders, gadgets, weapons and on one table, stacks of cash being counted by a man with dark black hair, pale skin and intelligent black eyes.  

"You're late." Yoongi Min said by way of greeting, eyes not once leaving the money in his hands.

The sleeves of his black sweater were rolled up to reveal his pale arms and hands. His favourite blue jeans were stained with coffee and his hair was sticking up in places where he'd run his hands through it. It wasn't uncommon for Jungkook to see his friend like this, Yoongi always gave 110% in whatever he was doing, and he wouldn't stop to eat or sleep until the job was done. Anyone who dared to distract him was likely to get a bullet between the eyes. For a moment Jungkook imagined what life would be like if Joon allowed Yoongi to carry his gun all the time. Their kill count would probably triple in just a week's time.

"We had to make a quick stop," Taehyung said. He crossed the room and dropped a bag of takeout food onto the couch beside Yoongi. "We were hungry."

"I hope you brought more than this. Jin's angry and you know how that usually turns out."

Jungkook rolled his eyes and started undoing the uncomfortable tie that came with the croupier outfit, not wanting to think about the last time they'd pushed Jin over the edge.

"Jin's always angry with us." Jimin huffed, flopping down into an empty armchair with a bottle of water.

"You always disobey his rules."

“ _Straight home after a job, no food stops or bowling breaks or whatever you think is a valid excuse for risking our lives._ ” Hoesok said in an impression of their oldest friend before he sighed dramatically. "I'm going for a shower." He announced before leaving the room. That was Hobi, big on being extra and noisy. It added some much-needed humour to the group, especially among the older members, and Jungkook was thankful for that.

Voices could be heard deeper in the apartment but Jungkook paid them no attention, his focus on the money in Yoongi's hands.

"What's all this?" Jungkook inquired, reaching for a stack of cash only to have his hand slapped away by the older man.

"An advance payment on our next job."

"But we just finished this one!" Jungkook complained. "I thought we were taking a holiday! No one told me about another job."

"It's a favour for an old friend." Namjoon announced as he entered the room. As usual, all eyes turned to him. Namjoon was great at drawing everyone's attention, he was the kind of person who expected to be listened to when he spoke and everyone wanted to hear what he had to say. The men listened attentively to their leader as he explained. "Do you remember the job in America a few years ago? That ambassador hit?" The others nodded, Taehyung with a somewhat blank gaze. "Miles Hayes, the guy who hired us before, contacted me. Someone's put a hit out on his brother's family to get to him. He's hired us as protection."

Taehyung frowned in the midst of removing his blue contact lenses. "But we don't to bodyguard work."

"Joon, we kill people," Jimin said slowly, making a finger gun and shooting Jungkook as emphasis. "We're assassins, not hired guns."

"What does Seokjin think about this?" Taehyung asked.

"JIN!" Yoongi called. Moments later the final member of The Devils walked into the room, a white towel around his waist and another one around his shoulders. His brown hair was damp and stuck up in random places. "Do you know about this?" He gestured at Namjoon and the money as if that was all the explanation necessary.

As usual, Jin knew exactly what his boys were talking about. "The Hayes job? Yes, I've been calling some of my contacts in the US about it. The tickets are booked, our cover story is figured out and we fly out of Paris in a few hours. Taehyung, you’ll need to get to work on the documentation as soon as we arrive."

"Hold on now," Jungkook protested before Taehyung could voice his agreement. "Since when do you two accept jobs without a group discussion?"

Namjoon and Jin looked at each other as if silently communicating something.

"Let me guess, it's personal?" Yoongi said. "Joon you know why we don't take jobs where emotions get involved."

Namjoon ran a hand over his face and sighed. "We'll talk about it later."

Jungkook let out an irritated huff and stood to his feet. "I'm going to pack, whether we take this job or not, we're leaving. I'm sick of Paris."

 

* * *

 

**0600 CST ~~> >~~Somewhere Over The Atlantic Ocean**

 The plane was dark except for the soft lights of a few passengers still watching a movie or reading a book. Taehyung's head was lying on Jungkook's shoulder and his soft snores filled his ears. Jungkook's eyes were slipping shut, the steady sound of Taehyung's snores lulling him to sleep.

The Devils had booked the entire first class cabin so they were free to sit wherever they liked and they didn't have to worry as much about someone overhearing them.

Jungkook and Taehyung had taken seats on the back row and now Jungkook watched as Yoongi left his seat to sit across the aisle from him. He recognised Yoongi's 'business' expression and was instantly alert.

"Here." Yoongi held out the oh-so-familiar folder that always held the face and identity of the next person Jungkook would be killing. Only this time, that person was someone he had to protect with his life.

Yoongi kicked back in his seat and watched Jungkook open the file curiously. The first thing he saw was a picture of a girl with a plain face.

It was obviously a school photograph. Her smile seemed to tease Jungkook as if she knew something he didn't. She had what looked like brown eyes and her hair was black, hanging straight around her shoulders. There was nothing remarkable or memorable about her appearance.

He flipped the photo over and read the paper behind it.

"Sam Hayes." He said aloud. "20 years old, studying at Chicago University to become a surgeon. Chicago? I thought we were going to New York?"

Yoongi shook his head. "The girl lives in Chicago, her mother and younger brother live in New York."

Jungkook sifted through the file to the pages of information that Jin had managed to dig up on the family before their flight left. "The father died in a terrorist attack during his service overseas." He frowned uneasily. "But... If the family is in New York... does that mean we're splitting up?"

Yoongi ran a hand through his hair, the only way to tell how stressed he was. Yoongi hardly ever let his emotions show, the only way Jungkook could tell was by the small things he did; like the way he'd bite the inside of his cheek if he was frustrated or how his voice dropped a few octaves when he was upset. Right now, he was displaying all his usual signs of anxiety which made Jungkook uneasy. "Yes, we're splitting up. You, Taehyung and I are going to Chicago, the rest are going to New York."

Jungkook closed the file with a snap. "We've never split up before. Not once in seven years. What's going on?"

"I don't know. This entire job has Joon acting in a way I've never seen." Yoongi stared at the man in question where he sat silently conversing with Seokjin. "It's personal, I just don't know why and if The Five need our help.... Something big is going down."

Jungkook felt as if his stomach had turned to lead and dropped through the bottom of the plane. The Five were a group of former special agents who went dark. They'd teamed up with them before on heists and hits but neither group would ever ask for help on something as trivial as a protection job. Not unless it was serious.

"The Five are involved? Is that why Joon's so freaked?"

Yoongi shook his head. "No, it's not that. I think he knows who's after this family, at least he has his suspicions and he's... almost scared."

"Joon isn't scared of anyone," Taehyung whispered. Jungkook jumped, not having noticed that his friend had woken and was now looking through the folder. "Let's see what we've got here..."He held up a picture of a woman, obviously Sam's mother. She had short curly black hair and the same black-brown eyes as her daughter. "Charlotte Hayes, born Charlotte Atkinson and her son," Taehyung moved his fingers and a picture of a young boy, maybe 13 or 14, slid out from behind the first picture. "Ashton Hayes." The boy looked nothing like his mother or sister at first glance. He had the same smile as his sister and his mother's dark eyes but the similarities stopped there. His hair was blond and messy, none of his mother's rich curls. The shape of his face held nothing of his mother's delicateness.

Taehyung reached toward Jungkook's ear and when he pulled his hand back he held another picture between his fingers. "The lost father. Julian Hayes, brother of our client, Miles Hayes. Not dead but missing in action for almost a year."

Julian Hayes looked just like his son. He had that secretive smile that both his children seemed to have inherited. His hair was cut short as was the style of most military men but Jungkook guessed that if it grew out it would be an ashy blond, just like his son's. His eyes were a lighter brown than his wife and children's and they spoke of a sadness that Jungkook would never know.

Taehyung slid another card from behind the picture of the father to reveal Sam Hayes. "I present to you, the Hayes family. Completely unknowing of their uncle's misdeeds. In fact, as far as the children are aware, they don't even have any family on their father's side."

"And the mother?" Jungkook slid the file from Taehyung's lap and looked at the page about the mother. "What's her family like?"

Taehyung clapped his hands and the pictures disappeared. "Non-existent. She was adopted off the streets." He waved his hand over the file and the pictures reappeared. “Charlotte bounced around from home to home, always known as ‘the problem child.’ She and Julian met in university and since then they’ve been your basic cookie cutter family. They settled down in suburbia, popped out a few kids and moved to Manhattan a few years back.”

“Annoyingly convenient if you ask me…” Yoongi mumbled thoughtfully.

Jungkook remembered a time where magic tricks Taehyung had used to put him to sleep had amazed him. As he'd grown older he'd learned the secrets behind the magic and had merely lost interest. Taehyung still used his tricks from time to time and it was more like a pleasant reminder to Jungkook now. It made him think of happier days; helped him pretend that they were all brothers, instead of highly trained killers.

The plane shuddered in a bout of turbulence and Hoseok awoke with a yelp. Jungkook watched his friend as he looked around confusedly before curling up again and going back to sleep.

Taehyung sighed and pulled his laptop out of his carry-on bag. “I’m not getting any more sleep until we land, might as well get some work done.” He opened a window to reveal a mockup of a fake passport.

Jungkook recognised his own face and leant over to take a closer look. “My name is Justin Siegul?”

“I’m paying tribute to your hometown.” Taehyung said over Yoongi’s snickers.

“Don’t laugh until you’ve seen your own name Yoongs.” Jungkook pointed at the screen. “My two older brothers are Jack and Matthew Siegul.”

“Yah!” Yoongi complained, smacking a laughing Taehyung on the arm. “Change it! I’m not telling people I’m named after a bird!”

“Too late, I’ve already sent ours to my Chicago contact.”

“Are you telling me that for this job, possibly the longest job we're going to take, we have to be known as the bird brothers?” Yoongi questioned in a threatening tone.

“What did you call the others?” Jungkook asked quickly. He knew what happened once Yoongi got that angry look in his eye.

“Christian Chim, Richard Ryder, Mon Ni Dao and Jim Fisher.”

“Oh brilliant, they get normal names while we’re stuck being the Seagull brothers.” Yoongi rolled his eyes, voice dripping with sarcasm. “This is going to be fun.”


	3. Chapter 3

**0800 CST ~~> >~~Chicago, USA**

Sam reluctantly opened her eyes and glared at the source of the loud beeping that had invaded her dreams. Her fist came down on the digital alarm clock once, twice, three times before the noise cut off.

The sound of slow, deep breathing let her know that her roommate, Natasha, was still fast asleep. Natasha would sleep through anything if Sam let her.

Sunlight filtered into their small shared room through the thin orange curtains that Natasha had hung up when they’d first moved in. The white walls bounced the orange glow onto everything in the room, making it seem like the world outside was burning. Sam’s nature posters took up the entire wall that her bed had been unceremoniously pushed up against, each picture depicting a different scene or wild animal.

Natasha’s side of the room was covered in Polaroid pictures from the last year of their life mixed in with random stickers or posters from the indie bands that Natasha worshipped. Her parents had bought their daughter a Polaroid camera as a going-away gift so that she could document her entire college experience. As a wannabe photographer, Natasha had jumped at the idea and insisted on taking pictures of something new nearly every day.

Sam rubbed the sleep from her eyes and kicked back the white bed sheets. The icy morning air hit her and a shiver ran through the girl’s body the second her toes came into contact with the cold wooden floor.

“Yo, Tash.” Sam threw a pillow at her friend who simply grunted and rolled over. “You have a lecture in an hour, get up!”

Natasha moaned in protest. “I’m up, leave me alone.”

“Oh no, if I leave you alone you’ll sleep until noon.” Sam teased, grabbing a random hoodie off the floor and smelling it before deciding it was clean enough to wear. She grabbed a set of clean underwear and a pair of black jeans before changing quickly to avoid the chilly morning from taking away what little warmth she had.

“Tash!” She complained, flopping down on top of her roommate. Natasha let out a satisfying yelp and shoved hopelessly at Sam.

“Get your fat ass off of me!” Natasha cried, throwing her sheets back to reveal an angry face framed by messy black hair.

Sam rolled her eyes but complied, sitting down at their shared desk/vanity table and made a face at her reflection.

Her brown hair was a mess of curls and she knew that trying to brush it would only result in a disaster. “I hate you for breaking my straightener.” She growled, running her fingers through the knotted mess and tying it back in a ponytail before applying her makeup.

“Shut up, you know I’d kill for your hair.” Natasha grumbled as she struggled out of bed and swapped her shirt for a striped sweater.

Sam rolled her eyes. “No one wants curly hair, it’s impossible to do anything with.”

“Curly hair is better than this!” Natasha’s reflection fixed her hazel eyes on Sam’s brown ones as she gestured frantically at the fluffy mess atop her head.

“Oh please,” Sam waved her hand dismissively, almost stabbing herself in the eye with her mascara brush. “You brush that once and it’ll be fine.”

“That’s what I want you to believe.” Natasha winked, lacing up her hiking boots before grabbing her favourite blue scarf. “Now scoot, I need to put on my face.”

Sam added the finishing touch to her lips and graciously moved aside for Natasha with an exaggerated flourish. She leapt back into bed and reached for the phone on her bedside table. Her face lit up into a grin when she saw that she had a text from Andy. As usual, anything to do with Andy sent her stomach into wild flips.

“I have work after class so I won’t be back until about 7.” Natasha said, carefully using the eyelash curler. Sam hummed absently, typing a reply to Andy’s good morning text.

“Dinner at Branko’s then?” Sam suggested, stomach growling at the thought of a Branko’s grilled cheese.

Natasha shrugged. “Where else is there?”

The girls fell into a comfortable silence as they slowly prepared themselves for the day. When they were both ready they left their room together, Sam running back to double check that they’d locked the door. They’d made the mistake of leaving it unlocked once and returned to find that all of the cash they’d left lying around had been taken by desperate students.

At the main doors to the building the girls bade each other a short farewell and took off toward their respective classes. Sam shifted her heavy messenger bag from one shoulder to the other, eyes glued to the screen of her phone as she checked her schedule.

She was so focused that she didn’t notice the young man until he collided with her and her phone flew from her hand. The two of them hit the ground hard, the man landing with barely a cut.

Sam wasn’t so lucky, in an attempt to save herself she’d thrown her hands out and grazed them on the rough concrete.

“Owww.” She groaned. The young woman pushed herself up and stared at her stinging hands in dismay. As she watched, a few small drops of blood welled up in her palms.

“I’m so sorry.” The man was saying. “I’m such an idiot I wasn’t watching where I was walking.”

Sam shook her head and looked up at him. His kind brown eyes were looking at her injured hands in panic. “It’s fine, I should’ve paid more attention to the path instead of my phone.”

“So we’re both to blame.” He grinned, a beautiful smile that made his already handsome face even more handsome. It was unfair how attractive this guy was. Sam smiled back and stood to her feet, brushing her hands off on her jeans.

“I guess so.” She scanned the ground for her fallen belongings. Her bag had slipped off of her shoulder but nothing seemed to have fallen out.

“Here, I think this is yours?” His deep voice distracted Sam from checking her bag for any damages, she looked back to see the man holding her phone, which was miraculously unscathed.

“Thank you.” She took her phone and picked up her bag. “My name’s Sam by the way. I’d shake your hand but I don’t think you’d appreciate the blood.” He giggled cutely and held up his fist.

“We’ll fist bump instead. I’m Jack, I just transferred here from Japan.” Sam bumped her fist against his and smiled.

“Nice to meet you, Jack.”

He tilted his head to the side and gazed at her with a small smile. “You too, Sam.” In the silence that followed Sam felt as if her feet were glued to the ground, she couldn’t move away from this incredibly beautiful human being, even if she wanted to. “I’ll see you around.” He said, spinning on his heel and strolling away, leaving Sam blinking at his back, confused as to what exactly just happened.

 

* * *

 

**1010 CST ~~> >~~Chicago, USA**

After an hour-long lecture - in which Sam was haunted by thoughts of the mesmerizing man from before - and a quick coffee break, it was time for Sam’s favourite class, biochemistry and molecular biology.

She entered the familiar lecture hall and took her usual seat at the front of the class.

She’d arrived early, again.

The woman took out her notebook and amused herself by counting the bricks on the wall as students trickled in in their ones and twos. Her head rested in her hand and she closed her eyes for a moment, the coffee hadn’t done much to wake her up.

The chatter and rustling started to quiet down and Sam opened her eyes to see Professor Tanner dropping his worn brown briefcase on the desk and look at his class.

“What a wonderful turnout for a Monday morning.” He muttered sarcastically. Sam looked back to see that only a handful of the class’ 40 students had shown up. “Before we start, does anyone have any questions in relation your papers, which are due in exactly three days, 1 hour and…” He glanced at his wristwatch. “40 minutes?”

Deafening silence. Someone at the back sneezed and Professor Tanner sighed somewhat disappointedly.

Someone knocked at the door and all eyes turned to the young man standing in the doorway. Black hair gave way to a shy face with dark eyes and chubby pink cheeks.

“Hi…” He cleared his throat and his cheeks turned a darker shade of pink. “Is this biochem?”

Professor Tanner stared at the student blankly until someone threw an eraser at him and he jumped to attention. “Right! Yes, you’re Justin Siegul, aren’t you?”

A few people at the back giggled at the boy’s name and the blush spread from his face to his neck. He nodded silently and Sam felt a stab of sympathy for the young man.

“Yes, yes. Take a seat, Dustin.” Tanner waved his hand toward the seats and Justin quickly sat down in the front row, one seat down from Sam. He didn’t even notice that Professor Tanner had already gotten his name wrong and if he did, he made no effort to correct him.

Tanner started his lecture, not bothering to see if anyone was taking notes or paying attention. As soon as he started talking, the professor would lose himself in the topic. He’d get excited about the smallest things and he spoke with such a passion that it was no wonder he was Sam’s favourite teacher.

“Excuse me?” A whispered voice distracted Sam from the lecture. She furrowed her brows and looked around, wondering who was talking. Justin was looking at her shyly, brown eyes wide. “Do you have a pen? I think I lost mine.”

“Oh, yeah. Hold on.” Sam rummaged around through her bag until her fingers closed on a pen. “Here you go.” She passed over the pen. Justin smiled shyly, eyes glued to her hand, almost as if he was scared of meeting her eyes. “I’m Sam.” She whispered, not wanting to disturb the lecture yet finding herself curious about Justin.

“I’m Justin.” He said quickly. “But you already knew that.” His blush came back and he turned away from Sam.

“I haven’t seen you around before.” Sam whispered.

The corner of his mouth twitched into a smile for a moment. “Yeah, I moved here from Japan.”

Sam thought of the boy from earlier and hummed thoughtfully. “Do you have a brother?”

“Of course you know Jack.” He smiled fondly. “Jack’s easy to like.”

“Jack and Justin. Do you have another brother called John?”

“His name’s Peter, actually.” Justin said, seeming unamused.

“Oh...”

“Yeah.” Justin curtly nodded and paid attention to the lecture, clearly ending the conversation.

The rest of the lesson passed by awkwardly. Or maybe it was only awkward to Sam, Justin seemed to be in his own world, taking notes and watching Professor Tanner with wide eyes and his mouth hanging open. His expression could only be described as absolutely, painfully adorable. Sam had to resist the urge to pinch his cheeks or comment on it but she had the feeling that neither reaction would be taken well.

Tanner finished his lecture and stared blankly at the wall for a moment before nodding once, gathering his things and leaving the room. People began gathering their things and Sam noticed Justin staring after Tanner in surprise.

“Tanner’s a bit aloof,” Sam said by way of explanation. “He often forgets that there are other people in the room but he’s a brilliant man.”

“I know, I read his paper.” Justin agreed. “I just thought he’d be… nothing like that.”

Sam smiled fondly. “You’ll get used to it.”

Justin gathered his things. “There’s a lot I need to get used to, American school is very different to school in Japan.”

“Well, I can show you the ropes if, you want? I have a few hours now, do you wanna see the best place to get caffeine in all of Chicago?”

Justin blushed and looked away. “Maybe another time. I have to… leave.”

He started for the door before halting and coming back towards Sam. He dropped her pen on the desk and practically ran from the room.

“What the hell is with those brothers and leaving like that?” Sam asked of no one in particular.

 

* * *

 

**1920 CST ~~> >~~Chicago, USA**

Bronko’s sandwich shop was alive with the sound of loud music and even louder young adults. It was the most popular place for university students to go on a week night. Sam and Tash walked into the crowded place and looked around in dismay.

“Everywhere’s taken!” Tash complained over the chaos. Sam stood up on her tiptoes and scanned the room once and then twice but her friend was right, every single table in the place was occupied, even the few tables that stood outside were taken despite the freezing weather.

“We can just go somewhere else.” Sam offered loudly. Tash shrugged and the girls started pushing through the crowd toward the exit.

“Hey! Sam!” A hand enclosed around Sam’s wrist and she looked up to see the guy she’d knocked into that morning.

“Oh hey! Jack, right?” Jack grinned and nodded happily, his entire face lighting up with the action. “This is my friend, Natasha.” Sam turned to introduce Tash who smiled and waved at Jack.

“Did you guys just get here?”

“Yes, and we were just leaving. There’s no room anywhere.”

“Come sit with us!” Jack suggested and, without waiting for a response, began pulling Sam deeper into the sandwich bar. Sam’s hand flailed out and caught at Natasha’s jacket, holding tight and forcing her friend to follow suit.

When Jack finally relinquished his hold they’d reached one of the dimly lit corners of the cafe. The table was occupied by two other young men, one Sam recognised as Justin from earlier and the other was a complete stranger to her but she knew enough to assume that this was Peter, the final brother. He had black hair and darker black eyes but his skin was the palest of all the brothers.

“Sam and Natasha, meet my brothers Justin and Peter.”

“Hi.” Justin said curtly, eyes glued to his phone.

Peter nodded his head at the girls. “Nice to meet you.”

“Sit down!” Jack ushered the girls into the empty seats between himself and Justin. Natasha shot Sam a desperate look to which she smiled and took a seat beside Jack. Natasha rolled her eyes but sank down into the empty chair.

The table fell into an awkward silence. Justin stared, fixated at his phone, Peter leaned back in his chair and threw his head back to stare at the ceiling in silence, Natasha chewed her lip and shot Sam desperate looks. Sam picked idly at a loose thread in her jeans.

“So how long have you two known each other?” Jack asked, apparently the only one not affected by the awkward atmosphere.

Natasha and Sam both answered simultaneously, “Two years.” They grinned at each other and Sam continued. “We’ve been roommates since our first year here.”

“Only after you got kicked out of your first room.” Natasha snickered.

A redheaded waiter appeared at Peter’s elbow and gave them all a bright smile. “Hey guys, good to see you Sammy, Tasha.”

“Hey Andy!”

“Yo, Andrew.”

“What can I get you guys?” Andrew directed his question at the three boys who were now paying attention to their surroundings once again.

Once everyone had made their orders, Andrew shot Natasha and Sam a wink before disappearing into the crowd.

“So what are you guys studying?” Natasha asked, slowly becoming more comfortable around these brothers.

“All things rocks and history,” Jack responded with a wistful smile. “I’ve dreamt of being an archeologist since the first time I watched Indiana Jones.”

“We’ve tried to tell him that it’s really nothing like that but nothing can get through his thick skull.” Peter teased. His voice was much deeper than Sam had expected just by looking at him.

“What about you then?” Sam asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Nothing as exciting as playing in the mud.” Peter chuckled, leaning to the side as a waitress appeared carrying their drinks.

“Peter wants to fly.” Justin snickered, eyes darting from one brother to the other, not once looking at Sam or Natasha. Sam’s heart melted at how obviously shy the boy was. “He reckons that one day he’ll be the first man on Mars.”

“Just so that he can eat a Mars bar.” Jack rolled his eyes but smiled at his brother.

“At least I won’t be digging up rocks for a living.” Peter snorted.

“Yah! They’re called fossils!”

“You’re a fossil.” Justin muttered to himself as he took a sip of his lemonade. Sam coughed out a surprised laugh at his comment which earned her weird looks from the others. Justin cleared his throat and took another sip to hide his smile. “I’m in medicine.” He said.

“Like Sam!” Natasha pointed out. “She has this annoyingly pure goal of healing thousands of people.”

“Sorry for inconveniencing you with my goodness.” Sam stuck out her tongue and Natasha simply winked.

“I guess I’m next,” Natasha said and held up her hands, making a rectangle with her thumbs and index fingers and looking through it. “Media, one day I’m going to create the best movie of our time, just you wait.”

“That’s adorable.” Jack snickered, “No offense, but nothing can beat Indiana Jones.”

Peter groaned loudly and Justin smiled like he knew what was coming. Natasha’s jaw dropped. “I-You… Indiana Jones?!” She croaked before gulping down some of her cola. She slammed the glass down causing some of the liquid to slop out onto the table. “Listen here, kiddo.”

“I’m older than you.” Jack mumbled with a half smile but Natasha went on as if he hadn’t spoken.

“ _Indiana Jones_ might be a good story but it is by _no_ means one of the best cinematic masterpieces ever created!”

“Prove it.”

Natasha let out a spluttering noise of indignation. “I WILL! You’ve clearly _never_ been introduced to the marvels of Alfred Hitchcock!”

“Boring.” Jack shrugged.

“Orson Wells!”

“I fell asleep watching Citizen Kane.”

“Charlie Chaplain?!”

Jack shook his head. “Can’t stand the silence.”

“Francis Ford Coppola!”

“ _Who_?”

Natasha looked personally offended at this stage and Sam was finding it harder to keep her laughter to herself.

“The genius behind The Godfather you uncultured swine!”

“Never saw it.” Natasha whimpered as if someone Jack had slapped her across the face. “I did _love_ Titanic though.” Jack smiled, seemingly unaffected by Natasha’s distress.

Sam bit her lip to force back the threatening smile, she knew very well of Natasha’s extreme dislike for Titanic.

“So!” Peter interrupted, clearly seeing the way Natasha’s face was reddening with every second. “My brothers and I are dying to explore the city and, personally, I’d rather be shown around by someone who knows what they’re doing than let Jack get us lost.”

“Again.” Justin added.

“We’d love to show you around.” Sam said before Natasha could utter a word.

Jack clapped his hands excitedly. “This is gonna be so much fun, I already know we’re gonna be best friends.”


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

**4 MONTHS LATER**

**1100 CST ~~> >~~Chicago, USA**

“GOOD MORNING BESTIE!” Jack yelled as he burst through the door of Sam and Natasha’s shared dorm room.

“Hey, Jacky!” Sam bounced to her feet and embraced her friend. The rough material of his favourite jean jacket felt cool against her cheek. Dark lines of exhaustion stained the skin under his eyes and his hair was messy, still damp from his shower but the sight of him still made Sam’s heart skip a beat. 

“Am I late?” He asked, shucking off his jacket to reveal an oversized grey hoodie.

“No, they’re not online yet.” Sam returned to her seat at the desk, mindlessly staring at the laptop screen as she waited for the call. “Did you bring the goods?”

Jack pulled up the spare chair and settled himself beside Sam then dropped a paper cup before her. “One large americano.”

“Jacky, you are a lifesaver.”

Jack leaned back and ruffled his already messy hair. “Where’s Tash?”

Sam gurgled something that sounded like ‘class.’ She swallowed the remaining dregs of her coffee and tossed the paper cup into the bin. “She left for photography like an hour ago.”

Jack fidgeted with Natasha’s eyelash curler and kept his eyes cast down when he next spoke. “She made another pass at me last night.”

Sam hummed absentmindedly, watching Jack in the mirror with curious eyes. “And you still haven’t told her you’re gay?”

“You’re the only person I’ve told, I… I’m not ready for the world to know just yet.”

Sam spun her chair around to face Jack who met her glare with a timid smile. “Jacky, you know I love and support you but if you won’t tell her you’re gay can you at least tell her you’re not interested? I couldn’t stand seeing both of you get hurt over this.”

“I know, I know.” Jack sighed, leaning forward and resting his forehead on Sam’s shoulder. “But what if she asks  _ why _ I’m not interested? You know what she’s like.”

“Tash  _ will _ do anything to figure out someone’s secrets.” Sam chuckled, remembering how Tash had tormented her into confessing who she was crushing on last year.

“Exactly!” Jack sighed, lifting his head at last and staring at Sam with pleading eyes. “ We’ve all got secrets. Mine are just more interesting.”

“I’ll say.” Sam turned away nervously. Despite knowing that Jack wasn’t interested in her, Sam couldn’t help the fact that his gaze still managed to make her stomach do flips. She wiped her sweaty palms on her jeans and checked her laptop again. “They’re online!”

As the words left her mouth the screen lit up to indicate an incoming phone call. When Sam picked up the video opened onto a young boy with blond hair, the same dark brown eyes as Sam’s and a huge smile lighting up his small face.

“Hey Asher!”

“SAM!” Ashton yelled in joy. “CHRISTIAN COME LOOK! SAM’S HERE!”

Someone laughed and a young man slid into frame beside Ashton. The man had a delicate face, framed by tousled orange hair. His plump lips split into a beautiful smile when he saw Sam. “Good to see you again, Sam.”

“Sam! Sammy! Who’s that?” Ashton asked, pointing at his screen. His favourite orange pyjama onesie was rolled up at the sleeves to reveal his paint stained arms. Ashton was always playing with paint, mom had gone as far as turning Sam’s old room into his art studio/playroom which was now covered in the results of the young boy’s creative mind.

Jack smiled. “Hello! My name is Jack. It’s very nice to meet you.” He lowered his voice so that the laptop’s microphone wouldn’t pick it up. “I know Ashton but who’s the dude?”

“That’s Christian, he’s Ashton’s nanny.”

“Christian is my best friend in the whole wide world.” Ashton said seriously.

“I thought I was!” Sam gasped. “Ash, you traitor.”

Ashton giggled. “You’re my sister! Brothers and sisters can’t be best friends!”

“Why not?” Jack asked, suppressing a smile.

“Christian said sisters are mean.”

“Christian, are you trying to turn my own family against me?”

Christian smiled angelically but said nothing to deny Sam’s accusations. “Sammy, when are you coming home?” Ashton pouted cutely. “Mommy and I miss you.”

Sam smiled fondly, resisting the urge to burst into tears at how adorable he was. “I’ll be back for your tenth birthday, I promise.” Something smashed on Ashton and Christian’s end of the call. Christian’s head snapped toward the noise. “What was that?”

Christian shushed Sam, all signs of joking was gone from his face. Ashton looked at something behind the laptop and his eyes widened in fear. “Ashton? Christian? What is it? What’s going on?” Jack asked, leaning forward.

Christian swore loudly. “They’re here. It’s time.” He reached for Ashton with one hand and ended the call with his other. Before the call ended a gunshot rang out and the last thing they heard was the sound of Ashton’s terrified shrieking.

The screen went black and Jack was on his feet, phone to his ear. “C’mon, c’mon, pick up. Come on Jimin.”

“Who’s Jimin? Nevermind! Where’s my phone? I need to call the cops!” Sam panicked, reaching for her own phone but Jack’s larger fingers enclosed around the device first.

“That’s the last thing we want to do.” Jack snapped, dialling a new number into his cellphone.

“Jack, what the hell is going on!”

“ _ Please _ be quiet Sam! I need to think.” He pressed the call button and lifted his phone to his ear. “It’s me, Mochi’s been compromised we need to move on to plan C, tell the others.” He fell quiet, eyes bearing into Sam’s, lifting his finger to his lips when she opened her mouth to speak. “Yes, she’s with me, meet us here……..Let Kookie deal with her just get the stuff ready.”

Jack ended the call and shoved his phone into his pocket before reaching for his jacket, speaking rapidly as he went. “I don’t have time to explain everything right now, all you need to know is that I’ve been hired to protect you and now you’re in danger. Pack a bag, bring only what you need and be quick about it.”

“Wait… what? Jack, please tell me what’s going on.” Sam pleaded, panic clutching at her heartstrings. “Christian and my brother are in danger, we  _ need _ to call the cops.”

“My name is Taehyung. Jack Siegul doesn’t exist. Christian is a part of my team, he’ll keep Ashton safe but believe me when I say that the second you call the police, you’ll condemn them both.”

Sam tried to argue but all she could manage was a small squeak. She cleared her throat and tried again. “Are- are you guys are like special agents or something? Ja-Taehyung, what you’re saying doesn’t make any sense!”

Taehyung was spared from answering when the dorm door opened and Natasha and Justin walked in. Justin looked tense and on edge whilst Natasha looked like her usual, happy self until she noticed the look on her best friend’s face.

“Sam… What’s going on? You look like you’re about to hurl.”

“Nothing, she’s fine.” Taehyung sighed, running a hand over his face. Justin crossed the room to stand beside his brother, fingers touching his shoulder in a comforting way and sure enough, both men seemed to relax slightly at being near the other.

“I wasn’t asking you.” Natasha said defensively, wrapping an arm around Sam’s shoulder while the brothers conversed in hushed tones.

“Tasha.” Sam whispered. “It’s- it’s, he’s….” Sam faltered as she remembered the panicked face of her younger brother.

“Did he do something to you? You’re shaking… Sammy, tell me what happened.”

“Sam, we have to go.” Taehyung interrupted. Justin stood beside him in silence, fingers restlessly tugging at the sleeve of his red sweater.

“She’s not going anywhere with you!” Natasha snapped, pushing Sam back and putting herself between the two.

Justin let out a frustrated sigh. “If she doesn’t come with us right now then you’re both going to die.” He advanced on the girls. “Don’t be stupid, there’s no time for hysterics.”

“Get back or I’ll scream!” Natasha threatened.

“Jungkook!” Taehyung warned, putting his hand on Justin’s shoulder and pulling him back. “You’re scaring them.”

Sam wrapped her fingers around Natasha’s wrist. “Tash, run.” She whispered. Both girls bolted, bursting through the door and out into the hallway. Someone yelled after them then the sounds of pursuit followed.

The girls raced down the stairs, clinging to each other’s hands and gasping for breath. Even with their head start, both boys were gaining on them fast. Sam’s lungs burned and a stitch stabbed painfully into her side by the time they reached the bottom of the stairs but she pushed on, releasing Natasha’s hand as they shoved past a group of girls entering the door and came out into the late morning sunlight. She dared a look behind her and saw the two men run from the building and continue on their trail.

“Split up.” Natasha gasped. “Go to Andy’s, I’ll take the long way.”

“NO!” Sam yelled but Natasha was already veering away from her, sprinting between two buildings and disappearing.

Sam had no choice but to continue on her course and hope that Natasha got away. She risked another look over her shoulder and saw to her dismay that both Justin and Taehyung were still following her. She put on more speed, bare feet screaming in pain as she ran over the concrete. Suddenly someone was crashing into her from the side, strong arms wrapping around her as she fell to the ground, too much out of breath to manage a scream.

Taehyung and Justin jogged to a stop beside her as the person who’d run into Sam groaned and rolled onto his back. “This is why I don’t do field work.” Peter’s deep, familiar voice breathed. Taehyung held out his hand and pulled Peter to his feet.

“We had her, there was no need for you to tackle her like that.” Justin panted, helping Sam to her feet and keeping a firm grip on her wrist when she tried to run again. “Stop it.” He snapped. “We’re trying to help you.”

“She’s terrified, what the hell did you idiots do!” Peter said, pushing Justin away from Sam who took a step back.

“Who are you people?” Sam demanded, moving away when Taehyung tried to come to her side.

“I told you already! We’re here to protect you.”

“We don’t have time for this.” Peter muttered. “My name is Yoongi, this is Taehyung and Jungkook. I promise that we are not going to hurt you. Now, will you please calm down and let us explain.”

Sam folded her arms over her chest and glared at them. “I want to go find Natasha, if you don’t want to hurt me then you’ll let me go.”

“You’re not going to find Natasha.” Jungkook mumbled.

“What did you do to her?” 

“She won’t be waking up anytime soon.” Yoongi shrugged and Sam felt her heart stop.

“She- you… She’s dead?”

“She might be, I didn’t have time to make sure.”

A lump formed in Sam’s throat and when she tried to speak a weak sob came out instead.

“Stop it! Both of you!” Taehyung snapped. “Natasha isn’t dead! She’s just been given a heavy dose of tranquillizer,  _ not _ enough to kill her. It’s better for all of us if we can get away without her raising any alarms for a few hours.”

“I am not going  _ anywhere _ with you.”

“You will if you want to see your brother again.”Jungkook said.

Taehyung smacked Jungkook lightly on the shoulder. “Stop scaring her! Sam, please believe me when I say that all we want is to keep you safe. We’ve been working undercover as private protection for your family. Three of us here, four of us in New York.”

“New York? You mean, there’s more of you?”

“Yes.” Yoongi said lightly. “Christian is one of us and if your brother was with him then he’s safe. I know what Jimin is capable of, some hired thugs aren’t going to get the best of him.”

“What if they do?”

“They won’t.” Yoongi said the words with such finality that Sam couldn’t help but believe him. “Besides, J-Hope will be there soon to help.”

“Who’s J-Hope?”

“You’ll find out soon enough.” 

“I’ll answer all of your questions honestly, but first I need you to trust us and do exactly what we tell you. Can you do that?” Taehyung said.

Sam hesitated, looking at the faces of three people who she had considered to be her closest friends just an hour ago and she found herself saying yes.

“Good,” Yoongi ran a hand over his face. “Jungkook, go find Natasha and put her into her bed. Sam, go pack a bag, Taehyung go with her. When you’re ready meet me at the airport, we’re going to England, it’s the first place Christian will go once he’s certain it’s safe.”

 

* * *

 

**0147 GMT ~~> >~~London, UK**

The only sound inside the car was Taehyung’s soft snores and the sound of Jungkook’s ticking watch. They’d been in London long enough for Yoongi to load them all into a car before he drove them away from the centre of the city and through rolling fields dotted with farmhouses. After an eight-hour flight and an extra hour of sitting in the small car Sam’s legs were starting to seriously cramp.

When the car finally pulled to a stop Sam peered out the window and watched other cars go past. “Where are we?” She asked quietly, speaking for the first time since they’d left the university.

The weak streetlights illuminated the street but nothing beyond. On one side Sam could see a building, lights streaming through the windows showed a bar at one end with a few people eating a late dinner or having a few drinks. On Taehyung’s side was nothing but black, she couldn’t make out a single shape.

“A beach town.” Yoongi muttered tiredly. “We’ll be safe here while we wait for the others.”

Jungkook rubbed his eyes sleepily and got out of the car, Sam following suit. As soon as she did so she was hit by the overpowering scent of salt. The sound of small waves lapping against the shore told her all she needed to know. “The ocean!” She gasped, wrapping her arms tightly around herself in an attempt to shield herself from the cold.

“What did you think ‘beach town’ meant?” Jungkook questioned, leaning back into the car to wake Taehyung.

“Make yourselves useful.” Yoongi tossed the keys at Jungkook who caught them easily then disappeared into the brightly lit hotel lobby.

Taehyung groaned and clambered from the car, blinking the sleep from his eyes and stretching. “Where are we?” He mumbled, dazed eyes looking around the darkness, blinking as a car drove past and illuminated the three in blinding light.

“The Ros.” Jungkook answered as he opened the boot of the car.

Taehyung hummed approvingly. “Haven’t been here in awhile.”

“You’ve been here before?” Sam asked, taking the heavy bag that Jungkook handed her.

“Not for years…” He sighed. “Last time we were here, this one,” He patted Jungkook on the shoulder. “Was still afraid of the dark.”

They grabbed the rest of the luggage and hurried into the warmth of the hotel lobby. It was a beautifully decorated place. The floors were white marble and the walls were hung with expensive paintings of the ocean. A few plush armchairs were spaced around low coffee tables holding magazines and even small cake stands which showed off delicate little cupcakes. Yoongi’s skinny frame was easily spotted, clad in all black and speaking to the receptionist across the room. He was leaning against the wooden counter, running a hand through his hair and smiling sweetly.

“He better get me an ocean view.” Taehyung squinted at Yoongi.

“The ocean is right across the street, hyung, you can see it every time you walk outside.”

“It’s not the same.”

Yoongi thanked the receptionist and hurried over to the group. “We’re split up into two rooms for one and one room for two.”

“Which one has the ocean view?” Taehyung demanded.

“The double room…?”

“Mine!” Taehyung raised his hand. “I’m bunking with Sam.”

“I’m  _ not _ sharing a room with any of you.” Sam said, crossing her arms and glaring at them.

“You used to sleep at our dorm all the time.” Jungkook pointed out.

“No, I slept at Peter, Justin and Jack’s dorm. Just because I believe that you’re here to protect me does not mean we’re all buddy buddy again.”

“We’re the exact same people, Sam.” Yoongi sighed in exasperation.

“Oh really, is your life goal still to eat a Mars Bar on Mars? Justin, how’s that phobia of the ocean going? Jack, are you even gay?!”

The boys fell silent, not one of them knowing what to say until Jungkook snickered. “You told her you were gay?”

Taehyung shrugged. “I’ve never been a closeted gay before, I thought it might be fun.”

Sam stared at them in disbelief. “Are you done?”

“You’ve made your point.” Jungkook sighed.

“No!” Taehyung protested. “She’s not safe!”

“She’d be safer in her own room than sharing with you.” Jungkook argued.

“We’re not forcing her to do anything she doesn’t want to do.” Yoongi concluded. 

“Other than forcing me to flee the country.” Sam muttered bitterly.

“Don’t test me,” Yoongi warned something dark passed over his face. “You’re right, we’re nothing like the people you knew. I would have no problem with killing someone just for getting my coffee wrong.” He pressed a room key into her hand. “Room 210, behave.”

Sam swallowed nervously but nodded. She grabbed her bag and headed for the stairs. The second floor corridor was just as lavishly decorated as the lobby. Thick white carpet muffled any noises and though the paintings here were smaller, they were clearly still expensive. Gold numbers painted onto the white doors in a curling, elegant style led Sam to room 210. She opened the door and swung it shut in relief, locking it for good measure.

It was a cosy room with one white single bed pushed against the wall. The walls were a plain white except for the one opposite the balcony which was decorated with wallpaper depicting many old fashioned brown suitcases. The carpet here was a light brown and the room was decorated with white, brown and grey furniture. Sam flopped into the soft, neatly made bed, eyes closing as exhaustion crept up on her and she fell into a restless sleep.

 

* * *

 

**0906 GMT ~~> >~~Southend-On-Sea, UK**

Taehyung leaned against the clean white wall and watched Jungkook impatiently hammer on the door of room 210. “What is she doing?!” He groaned. “You don’t think she tried to make a break for it do you?”

“We’re on the second floor, what is she going to do, backflip into the ocean?”

Jungkook paused, fist resting against the door, to shoot Taehyung a dirty look which just made him chuckle. He loved how easy it was to wind up Jungkook. “You could  _ help _ me, you know?”

“I am helping,” Taehyung commented, pulling a phone from his pocket. “Sam’s phone.” He said before Jungkook could ask. “I got her a new SIM so it’ll work and Natasha’s been calling all night.”

“Has she gone to the police yet?” Jungkook resumed his banging on the door.

“Yes, but they’ll cancel the investigation as soon as we get Sam into a police station to declare that she’s officially safe.”

“How do you suggest we convince her to do it without telling them that we’ve basically kidnapped her?”

Taehyung shrugged. “Easy, watch and learn little one.” He teased, bumping the side of his hip against Jungkook’s to move him aside. “Sam?” He called, gently knocking at the door. “It’s Taehyung, I have your phone.”

Silence.

“Maybe she did run for it.” Jungkook suggested worriedly.

“Don’t be stupid, Jungkookie.” Taehyung pulled a room key from his pocket. “Sam? We’re coming in!” He unlocked the door and pushed it open. Once they were inside the room the sound of running water reached their ears. “See? She’s just showering.” Taehyung flopped down on the messy bed, unlocking Sam’s phone and scrolling through it while Jungkook poked through the open suitcase lying on the coffee table.

“So… What exactly is your plan here?” He asked.

“Why do I need a plan?” Taehyung opened the camera app and started pulling faces at the camera as Jungkook pulled aside the curtains to reveal a grey sky and an ocean of even darker, more miserable grey.

Jungkook dropped the curtain and looked back at his friend. “ _ Hyung _ .” He complained.

The shower cut off with a squeak and both young men fell silent as Sam came out of the bathroom, towel drying her hair. She raised an eyebrow at the two guys in her room. “What?”

“I’m hurt that you made me share a room with Jungkook, he’s such a bad roommate.”

“Did you really just come in here to complain to me?” Sam quipped.

“Maybe I did.” Taehyung smirked and went back to scrolling through Sam’s old messages with Andrew. “Your friends are all asking where you are.” He added, making a face of disgust when he saw the flirtatious messages the two had been sending each other.

“Is that…. My phone!” Sam reached for it but Taehyung, moving with lightning reflexes, jumped from the bed and out of her reach. “How did you even unlock it?”

“You told me the password ages ago.”

Her eyes narrowed angrily. “I told  _ Jack _ the password. You know, my gay best friend from Japan? The guy who cried about the Titanic with me. That person was my friend, you are not.” Taehyung felt his good mood deflate, he hadn’t counted on the fact that he would actually enjoy being friends with this woman; that he would actually  _ miss _ being so close to her.

“He still cries when he watches Titanic.” Jungkook offered, leaning against the wall and staring out the window. “We’re not all that different from the people you knew, Sam.”

“Just give me my phone and get out.” Sam sighed and Taehyung knew her well enough to realise that she was moments from breaking out into tears.

“We’re not allowed to leave you alone; not until Yoongi gets back.”

“And where the hell is Yoongi?” She snapped impatiently.

“He’s meeting up with Jin at the airport. We got a message from him a few hours ago saying he’d be landing in Rochester by 10 am.”

Sam ran a hand over her face as if she could wipe away the exhaustion. “Who is Jin and why is he important?”

“He was assigned to your mother.” Taehyung said quickly.

“Assigned to screw her.” Jungkook snickered, not seeing the look of outrage on Sam’s face.

“Wait… Jin is… Richard? My mom’s  _ boyfriend _ ?! That’s so incredibly fucked up! What is  _ wrong _ with you people!?”

“If Taehyung hadn’t pretended to be gay you’d probably have ended up asking him to be your boyfriend.” Jungkook pointed out. “We were hired to protect your family and to do so discreetly, that means hiding in plain sight yet still remaining close enough to our targets to avoid arousing suspicion from your enemies. How else are we supposed to do that if you want to be more than friends?”

“We don’t have enemies!” Sam screeched, cheeks flushed. “My family hasn’t done anything to deserve this!”

“Kookie, why don’t you go get us a table for breakfast?” Taehyung cut in, not wanting things to get out of control.

Jungkook rolled his eyes but did as he was asked, letting the door slam shut on his way out. When he’d left Sam shot Taehyung a look of distaste before storming out to the balcony. Cool, salty air drifted into the room when she opened the glass door. Taehyung dropped the phone onto the bed and went to lean against the door frame. “Jungkook doesn’t mean any disrespect, he’s never really understood why people get upset over certain things.” Sam remained silent, staring out at the ocean as her curly hair whipped around in the breeze. “I know that you’re worried about your family, you don’t need to hide it.”

“Why is this happening to us?”

“If I told you you wouldn’t believe me.”

“Try me.”

“Okay, your uncle hired us to protect his family after your father, his brother, went missing overseas.”

“You’re right, I don’t believe you. My father was an only child.”

“That’s what your parents wanted you to believe… When you were very young your parents and your uncle came to an agreement that neither you or your brother would ever know about him. The work he did was dangerous and if his enemies knew about his family, you’d all be in danger. So he pretended not to have any family at all. He hid any traces of his past, he stopped all contact with your parents and for a while, it worked.

“But his enemies were smarter. Instead of looking in the present they searched the past, they found your grandparents and through them, they tracked down your father.” Taehyung noticed Sam’s knuckles turn white as her grip on the railing tightened. “Sam, I’m very sorry you have to find out like this but now that you know the truth, surely you must trust us. All we want is to keep you safe and to do that you’re going to have to do something for us.”

Sam took a deep breath to calm herself and when she finally turned around to face Taehyung he saw just how pale she was as tears dripped from her cheeks. She wrapped her arms around herself tightly. “What is it?”

Taehyung fought back the urge to put his own arms around her, knowing that she wouldn’t appreciate such a gesture, at least not from him. “When Natasha woke up and didn’t find you at Andrew’s they went to the police. You’ve almost been missing for 24 hours so they’re about to mount a full-scale missing person’s investigation for you which we really want to avoid. We need to take you to the nearest police station and you need to prove that you’re safe and that you haven’t been kidnapped so that they call off the search.”

“What about my family? Are they…?”

“Dead? I can’t tell you anything certain but Jin will have answers, it’s not safe for him to say anything unless we’re face to face so you’re going to have to wait for him to get here.”

Sam nodded and wiped her face clear of tears. “When do we go to the police?”

“After breakfast, I’m starving!” He said in a falsely cheerful voice which made Sam smile.

“You’re always hungry, it’s shocking that you’re so skinny.”

“I’m taking that as a compliment, Miss Hayes.” Taehyung winked and headed for the exit. “Come on, leaving Jungkook alone in a crowded room for too long is never a good idea.” He held the door open as Sam picked her phone up off the bed and walked out into the empty hallway.

 

* * *

 

**0948 GMT ~~> >~~Southend-On-Sea, UK**

Sam followed Taehyung through the beautifully decorated hotel. He clearly knew the place well as he ducked through a staff’s staircase that opened right out into the dining hall. It was a grand room with floor-to-ceiling windows spanning one side, giving diners a view of the ocean while they ate. The elegant room was filled with the intoxicating smells of coffee and food. Jungkook had found a table somewhat distanced from the others and was working his way through a large plate of bacon, eggs, toast garnished with a few roasted tomatoes with two covered dishes beside him.

“What’d you get me?” Taehyung asked, sitting beside his friend without hesitation and lifting the off cover of one plate to reveal a plate of sausages, scrambled eggs, toast and hashbrowns. Sam slid into the spot opposite him as Taehyung grinned and said something to Jungkook in another language which made the other man laugh.

Jungkook pushed the final dish toward her. “Your favourite.” He said simply and returned to his own meal. Sam lifted the cover to reveal a stack of blueberry pancakes dripping in syrup with a half melted ball of chocolate ice cream beside it. “Mind you, they don’t usually add the blueberries or the ice cream so you’re welcome.”

“Thanks.” Sam offered him a small smile. She found herself thinking sadly about the shy and yet incredibly adorable Jungkook had been only a day ago while she dug into her breakfast.

Jungkook and Taehyung conferred in that same foreign language, laughing and smiling like real brothers while Sam stared out at the ocean, still deep in thought. It was only when the two fell silent that she looked away from the view to find them both looking at her expectantly.

“Sorry?”

“You zoned out, didn’t you?” Taehyung asked with a fond smile. Sam recalled the numerous times when they’d both teased each other for doing just that.

“I asked you what you’re going to say to the police.”

“I dunno, me and a few friends decided to randomly go on vacation?”

Jungkook shook his head. “You can’t mention us. They’ll ask questions that you can’t answer and there’s no doubt that Natasha would have blamed us for kidnapping you.”

“Which is bad?” Sam guessed.

“We don’t exist.” Taehyung said.

“What do you mean ‘you don’t exist?’”

“I mean, none of us exists. Yoongi removed any digital records of our births, we never went to school, some of us had to fake our deaths but all of us are living off the grid.”

“That’s not possible, everyone’s got records or something somewhere! What about security cameras or bank accounts? You work so you must get paid or pay taxes.”

“We get paid in cash and Hoseok runs a credit card scamming business on the side of what we normally do. Whenever we stay somewhere for a while we use fake names then clear out all traces of ourselves when we leave.” Jungkook explained.

“That’s why the others are taking so long to get here, they’ve got to clean up in Chicago before they can leave the country.”

“What about your passports? Driver’s license?”

“Forgeries.” Jungkook said.

“Sam,” Taehyung chuckled. “It’s a lot easier to disappear than you’d think.”

“But don’t you have parents? Siblings? Aunts? Uncles?”

“I never knew my parents. My mother couldn’t afford an abortion so when she gave birth to me she left me on the front steps of an orphanage without bothering to give me a name.” Jungkook said. “That’s where I first met Jimin. The orphanage was burnt down a few years later and they lost all record of us. That’s when we ran away together if anyone noticed we were missing they didn’t care enough to come looking.”

“And I grew up on a farm with my grandmother. My parents drowned while we were on holiday so my grandmother raised me. She died when I was very young so I went to the city to live with my godmother. I never got there. They put me on a train, I missed my stop and was lost until I found Jin. There was a search for me but in the end they decided that I’d just run away and ended up getting myself killed.”

“What about the others?” Sam asked, forgetting all about food as she listened to their tales.

“Those aren’t our stories to tell.” Taehyung dismissed. “The point is, if you were to look us up, you’d either come up with a death certificate or there wouldn’t be any trace of existence at all. Any investigation into us will raise more questions and get us all into trouble so you’ll have to come up with a different excuse.”

“What excuse?” Sam blinked.

“For the police.”

“I’ll pretend I broke up with my boyfriend then. I needed to escape so I came here.”

“Works for me.” Jungkook shrugged and looked at Taehyung. It was clear to Sam that, no matter what Jungkook said or did, he would always turn to Taehyung for approval, at least that hadn’t changed.

“It’ll do for now.” He pushed his empty plate away. “Are you both done? We should go to the police before Yoongi gets back and Jin would kill us if he finds out we’ve just been sitting around telling ghost stories all morning.” 

Jungkook and Sam followed Taehyung through the hotel and out through the main entrance. When they stepped out into the salty air a harsh wind battered the three, lifting Sam’s mess of curly hair and causing it to whip around her head chaotically. The others weren’t as bothered by the wind, Taehyung simply running a hand through his hair and letting it get messed up while Jungkook pulled a beanie out of his pocket and hiding his dark locks under it.

The conversation died out while they walked, following directions from Jungkook’s phone. As Sam followed them down the oceanside road she found herself wishing one of them would say something, just so that she might have an excuse to scream and vent her frustration, her panic, her fear, everything she was keeping bottled up inside. Unfortunately, when Taehyung finally broke the silence it wasn’t for something she could yell about.

“You should probably practice what you’re going to say so that you don’t mess up in front of the police.” After that, Taehyung and Jungkook grilled Sam with questions that the police were likely to ask her while they walked, looking for any holes in her story and telling her how to act and speak while she was inside.

“Here it is.” Jungkook stopped outside the building and both boys turned to Sam. “We can’t go in with you, you’re on your own in there.” He said, dark eyes serious. “You know your story, everything will be fine if you stick to it.”

“And please don’t turn us in, it’ll make protecting you and your family a lot harder.” Taehyung said and Sam couldn’t tell whether he was joking or not.

“We’ll wait for you in the coffee shop around the corner.” Sam’s stomach turned into a mess of nerves as she realised what was happening. She was about to lie to the police, what if they saw right through her? What if she slipped up? What if she got Taehyung and Jungkook into trouble? Why wasn’t she even considering telling the police the truth? Everything that could possibly go wrong ran through her mind on repeat.

“You guys owe me a coffee after this.” She said, her shaky voice revealing just how nervous she was.

“If you don’t screw up, I’ll buy you all the coffee in the world.” Jungkook offered, patting her on the back.

“I just might hold you to that.” Sam shot back, letting out a calming breath before steeling her nerves and walking through the front door. She turned back and caught a glimpse of the two staring after her before the door closed and she was alone.

Sam took a deep breath and walked to the front desk. The policewoman sitting behind the desk looked up and smiled politely. “Good morning, how may I help you?” Sam opened her mouth to speak but couldn’t manage anything more than a small croak. The woman furrowed her brow in concern. “Is everything okay dear?”

Sam nodded vigorously. “S-sorry, sore throat.” Her voice came out wobbly and she cleared her throat before speaking again. “My name is Sam Hayes, I’m here because my friends in Chicago issued a missing person's report for me and I wanted to let you know that I’m… not… missing…” Her voice trailed off with uncertainty as she noticed how the woman was scanning her appearance and demeanour. Her intelligent gaze drifted over her clean clothes, taking in her messy, windblown hair, her pale face and her bright eyes.

“Well, we’re going to have to keep you in while we check that and of course you need to answer a few questions.” Sam nodded, suddenly very aware of a number of cameras in the building and the fact that one had a perfect view the path right outside the front doors where she had stood with Jungkook and Taehyung. They would have been directly in view of the cameras. “Please take a seat.” The woman indicated a small waiting area and Sam sank down in a rather uncomfortable chair.

Her head rolled back to stare at the white ceiling as drummed her fingers on the armrest of her chair. She tried smoothing out her hair but gave up when her efforts only seemed to make her hair frizzier. At last, a balding man in a suit walked in through one of the doors leading out of the room. “Sam Hayes?”

She jumped to her feet and approached the intimidating man. “That’s me.”

“Hello, Sam.” He smiled and held out his hand for her to shake. “I’m Detective Tony Spicer, I just need to ask you a few questions then we can clear up this whole missing persons mess.” He spoke in a pleasant tone and his faded blue eyes crinkled when he smiled. “Would you please come this way?” He turned without waiting for a reply as he led her back through the door he’d come through moments ago. They came out into a short hallway with a few doors off the sides. Sam followed him through the first door on the right-hand side and found herself in a small, sparsely decorated office with little furniture. “Sit down, make yourself comfortable. Would you like a cup of tea? Some biscuits?” He indicated the teapot standing on a table on the side of the room with a few mugs beside it and a large cookie jar.

“Yes to both.” She said, trying to remember everything Jungkook and Taehyung had said to her as she sank into one of the hard-backed seats at the desk. Detective Spicer quickly poured two mugs of tea.

“Milk? Sugar?”

“No thanks.”

They were both quiet as Detective Spicer handed her a steaming cup of black tea and set a plate of chocolate chip cookies on the table in front of them. He sat down on the opposite side of the table and typed a few things into his computer. “Now, Sam. It says here that your friend Natasha Jane Kingston reported you missing nearly two days ago after the two of you had been attacked by brothers Justin, Jack and Peter Siegul but when the police interviewed their teachers the only one who had ever heard the name Siegul was a Professor Tanner. Before Justin Siegul appeared in your class, the three of them didn’t exist. Can you shed some light on this information?”

Sam burnt her tongue as she took a big gulp of tea. “I didn’t know anything about that, they were just guys we met at uni.”

“Were you present when Natasha was attacked by the brothers?”

“Technically yes, but it wasn’t an attack. Tash was upset when I told her I was leaving, she tripped and hit her head. Jack was angry that I was leaving so I guess she got confused about the whole thing when she woke up. We put her in bed when it happened and Jack promised me that he’d make sure she was okay because if I’d stayed any longer I would have missed my flight. Then I got into a taxi to go to the airport, I haven’t seen any of them since I left.”

Detective Spicer stared at Sam critically. “Sam, you can tell me the truth. I’m here to help you. Is someone forcing you to say these things? Have you been taken here against your will? If you have we can offer you protection.”

“No one’s forcing me to say anything, detective. I chose to come to England and I’m safe where I am.”

“So why did you leave America so suddenly?”

She paused and took a deep breath, remembering Jungkook’s suggestion to act upset. “I- I broke up with my boyfriend and needed to get away…N-no… No one knew about him.” She let her voice trail off before she rubbed at her eye to clear off fake tears. “He didn’t want anyone to know so I kept our relationship secret. He… he abused me p-physically and emotionally. I finally realised how bad I had it when I-I caught him in bed with another woman. H-he tried to contact me s-so I blocked him and deleted his messages. I booked a flight to the first place I could think of and… I ran away.”

“What was his name?”

“Carlton, he never told me any other name. He made me call him Carlton or other more… intimate names when we were having sex.”

“And he never revealed anything about his past? Where he worked? Who he spent time with? Anything that could help us identify him?”

Sam shook her head, eyes fixed on the bookshelf behind him. “He kept me secret and I kept him secret. I never met any of his friends and if I asked about his life he’d either deflect or make me feel bad about asking.” Detective Spicer typed something into his computer. “I don’t want to press any charges.” Sam quickly added. “Not yet at least, I want to… I  _ need _ to feel better before I decide what to do.”

“Okay.” He smiled sympathetically. “I’ll stop asking you about that for now but there are other things I have to ask you before I can let you leave.”

Sam took another sip of tea and reached for a cookie. “What do you need to know?”

 

* * *

 

**1124 GMT ~~> >~~Southend-On-Sea, UK**

The small cafe was filled with the overwhelming scent of roasting coffee beans. The worn down wooden tables were stained different colours of brown and the uncomfortable chairs surrounding them had all been painted different bright colours. Quiet music intermingled with the sounds of soft chatter of the few other patrons of the coffee shop. The coffee machines hissed and gurgled pleasantly and the room was just the right temperature to sit back and spend a few hours reading a good book or simply relaxing.

Taehyung and Jungkook were the only two people in the entire cafe not doing just that. Taehyung was tapping his fingers on his pink mug and his dark eyes were scanning the room over and over again; whilst Jungkook chewed on his lip so much that Taehyung was shocked it wasn’t raw and bleeding. A bell jingled and Jungkook’s eyes darted to the door behind Taehyung and his whole body visibly relaxed when he saw who had walked in. “Hyung!” He called out. 

Seokjin and Yoongi waved and parted at the counter while Yoongi ordered himself a coffee and Seokjin made a beeline for his younger friends. His hair had been dyed a light caramel colour since Taehyung had last seen him. “You morons.” He scolded when they were within earshot. “You almost screwed up the entire job.” Taehyung and Jungkook stood up to hug Seokjin while he continued lecturing them. “First the casino, now this? And don’t get me started on Monte Carlo.”

“That was different!’ Jungkook protested. “If we didn’t abandon the mission we would’ve failed and Dean would have gotten away!”

“The waitress made us as soon as we sat down!”

“Yah! Stop yelling!” Yoongi snapped, sliding into an empty seat with a large mug of steaming black coffee cradled in his hands.

The three men sat down, all their issues forgotten as they recounted the events of the last two days.

“We lost contact with Jimin after you guys sounded the alarm. Hoseok and Joon searched the apartment but found no trace of them, the entire place had been trashed. They found blood on the floor and three dead attackers, we have no idea who ordered the hit.”

“Hasn’t Jimin contacted anyone?” Taehyung asked, fear making his voice come out in a higher pitch than he’d hoped. “Do we know if he’s alive?”

“Yes, he left a message in Hoseok’s apartment. Hoseok found it before he cleared out.” Jin slid one of their calling cards across the table, one of the cards they left on the bodies of their victims, and Taehyung snatched it up eagerly.

He recognised Jimin’s neat scrawl instantly.

_ I’m fine, they know about Sam. Get her out of the country and stay there. Don’t let her or Charlotte out of your sights. I’ve got Ashton, he’s safe but they're following me, I can’t meet up with you until they’re off our trail. I’ll contact Suga when it’s safe. Don’t look for me. _

Taehyung felt his stomach turn to lead as he handed the note over to Jungkook. At least Sam is safe. He thought on repeat. Jimin is alive. You’ll see him soon. At least Sam is safe.

“Where’s Charlotte?” Jungkook asked, surprisingly it was Yoongi who answered.

“Hobi and Namjoon are with her in New York, they’ve explained the situation to her and because she knew about her husband’s brother, she hasn’t been much of a problem. She wanted to stay in New York until we hear from Jimin and Ashton but Joon convinced her that if Jimin appears, it’ll be here. They’re flying out in a few hours, should be here before tomorrow morning.”

Jin was looking around the coffee shop warily as if something had just occurred to him. “Where’s Samantha?”

“It’s Sam.” Yoongi, Jungkook and Taehyung corrected simultaneously, laughing when they realised what they’d done. They’d all heard Sam angrily correct people who called her Samantha so often that it had become instinctual to do just that on her behalf.

Jin raised an eyebrow quizzically. “Where is  _ Sam _ ?”

“She’s at the police station, getting them to drop the missing person’s investigation.” Jungkook supplied, smiling at the waitress who brought him the toasted sandwich he’d ordered.

“And you left her there alone?”

“We couldn’t go in with her! And do you think the police wouldn’t ask questions when they saw us hanging around outside waiting for her? Letting her go in alone and be seen leaving alone is a lot simpler.”

“What if she tries to run? What if she tells them that you kidnapped her?”

“She won’t,” Taehyung said firmly. “We’ve known her for months, do you think we would’ve let her do this if we weren’t absolutely certain that she wouldn’t turn us in?”

“I think that spending months with this girl has affected your ability to think straight when it comes to her. I think that you’ve forgotten that whatever friendship you had with her wasn’t real. I think you’re forgetting that once this job is done, you will never see her again.”

The three younger men remained silent and Taehyung couldn’t help but admit that Jin was right. He’d let himself become attached to Sam and forget what he was here for. When he thought about never seeing her again, he couldn’t deny the ache in his chest. He would miss the way she made him laugh. He would miss meeting her for coffee every morning before class. He missed her spending the night and watching stupid movies together with his brothers until the sun came up. He missed the feeling of a normal life. The feeling he got when he looked at her. Sam represented everything he could never have. One look at Yoongi and Jungkook told him that they felt the same. They’d all enjoyed their lives these last few months a little too much.

“I need some air.” Taehyung said, shoving his chair back and storming out of the warm cafe.

The cold, biting wind came as a welcome shock. He gulped in lungfuls of fresh, ocean air and set off down the path, heading towards the police station, eyes fixed to the concrete beneath his feet as angry thoughts flitted through his mind. Why couldn’t he have a normal life? It would be so simple to leave the group, they wouldn’t try to stop him. He pondered for a moment about what it would be like to leave the Devils, how different things would be if he tried to lead a regular life and he knew that he could never do that. A normal life would bore him. He would miss his brothers, the freedom they had, he would miss the thrill of a job, the adrenaline that pumped through his veins when he made a kill. No, he could never have a normal life.

The front door of the police station opened and Sam emerged, thick curly hair lifting in the wind. She looked so small and delicate. Her brown eyes met his and her lips quirked up into that same smile she always greeted him with and Taehyung decided right then and there that, no matter how this job went, he wouldn’t lose Sam. No matter what it took, he would keep her in his life.

“I thought you were going to wait around the corner.” Sam said as she walked up to his side. “Didn’t trust me not to run?”

“Jin arrived, he wanted me to meet you here.” Taehyung lied smoothly, leading the way back to the coffee shop.

“Ah, I see. Jin didn’t trust me not to run.” Her eyes widened hopefully. “Is my mother with him?”

“No, she’s still in New York but we did hear from Jimin. He’s alive, so is Ashton. No one’s been hurt and he’s going to come meet us.”

Sam breathed out in relief. “So my family is okay?”

Taehyung nodded and held the door of the coffee shop open for her. “Yep.”

Sam paused on her way inside and looked him dead in the eye. “Taehyung, promise me that they’re all okay and that I’ll see them soon.”

Taehyung sighed and met her piercing gaze. “Sam, I promise. You’re going to see your family soon.”

She nodded, satisfied and walked inside, spotting Jungkook straight away and joining him and the others without a backward glance. Taehyung followed, still deeply wrapped up in his thoughts as he grabbed a vacant chair and put himself between Jin and Yoongi, opposite Sam and Jungkook.

He watched as Jungkook introduced Sam to Jin who looked her up and down critically while she stole half of Jungkook’s remaining sandwich. Jungkook rolled his eyes and teased her good naturedly. Taehyung imagined that they were all just friends catching up for lunch and found himself smiling wistfully, chin resting in his palm as he stared blankly at the table.

“Yah! Taehyungie.” Yoongi lightly smacked Taehyung’s arm, causing him to look up at the others with a questioning look. “Do you want anything?”

A waitress stood at their table, pen hovering over paper as she waited impatiently for Taehyung’s answer. “Another orange juice please.” The waitress jotted down his order and left, walking swiftly around tables and people.

“So Jin, you were saying…” Sam’s eyes fixed on Jin expectantly as he leaned back in his chair. 

“When the others get here we’ll talk about our next move, until then we lay low, don’t do anything to draw attention to ourselves. Just act like we’re all friends on holiday. Taehyung, I’ll need you to set up some new identities for us and for Sam’s family. Yoongi, get some feelers out, try and get word to the Five and see if they’re any closer to finding out who’s ordering the hit. Jungkook, stay by Sam’s side, where she goes, you go. No arguments.” Jin added, seeing Sam open her mouth to protest. “I’ll contact a few people I know and ask them to keep an eye out for Jimin.”

Taehyung saw Sam’s face twist into a frown and knew what was coming. “I thought you knew where Jimin was? That you knew where Ashton was!” Her eyes met his and he could tell she was seconds away from yelling.

“You didn’t ask if we knew where he was.” He said quietly. “You wanted to know that they were safe and they are.”

“How can you know that if you don’t know where they are!” She screeched.

“Because we trust Jimin.” Jungkook jumped in, as always, to defend Taehyung. “We’ve been over this already Sam. Jimin won’t let anything happen to your brother, he’d give his own life for Ashton if he had to.”

“Thank you Jungkook, the thought that the only person protecting my brother would willingly let himself die really helps.” Sam snapped, voice thick with sarcasm.

“Are you forgetting that I have known Jimin for my entire life?” Jungkook said patiently. “He’s more than a brother to me and if anything bad happened to him I would kill everyone responsible and then myself. If I am not worried about Jimin and Ashton then you shouldn’t be either.”

Sam crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back in her chair in defeat. Jin turned to Yoongi and spoke in rapid Korean. “Last I heard, the Five were in Egypt. You should start there.” The waitress appeared with their orders and set everything down quietly.

“Egypt is a problem,” Yoongi replied, also in Korean. “I don’t have many contacts there and most of the underground networks there have a grudge against us for taking out some really important people a few years back.”

“Do what you can, spread the word that the Devils are looking for information and that we’re offering a reward. I’m sure people will get over their issues when they hear that we’re offering something for their troubles.”

“We’re going to need tech, I had to ditch most of it back in Paris.” Jungkook added. “Should I see our guy in London?”

“No, keep Sam away from any involvement with this stuff, the less she knows the safer her family will be when we’re done. I’ll go with Taehyung.”

“We’re going to have to start planning for when the others get here.” Taehyung said. “We obviously can’t stay at the Roslin for much longer.”

“Are you guys going to tell me what the hell you’re talking about?” Sam interrupted, hands cupped around her black coffee.

“No.” They all said, much to her frustration.

“I’m going to the bathroom.” She muttered and left the table.

“Is she always like that?” Jin wondered aloud.

“No, she can be worse.” Yoongi chuckled fondly. 

“This is why we don’t have a girl on the team.” Jin muttered.

“Because you’re already feminine enough?” Jungkook shot with a laugh that made the others join in moments later.

“Would it be so bad to have a girl on the team?” Taehyung asked when they’d all sobered down. Jungkook’s eyes widened and darted between Yoongi and Jin as if he feared their reaction. Of course he knew exactly what Taehyung was really asking.

Yoongi had paused, cup halfway to his mouth to stare at Taehyung. “Why do you ask, Taehyungie?” He said slowly. “Something to do with a certain brunette?”

“Taehyung, you know why we don’t have a girl on the team. It’s more practical. If we brought on a girl, especially the one you’re thinking of, feelings would get involved and things would be complicated. Besides, she has a life to go back to, friends, a family, people and dreams she’d have to give up.”

“I guess.” Taehyung shrugged, staring at his untouched sandwich and drink. Yoongi sighed and put his coffee down.

“Tae, I’m going to miss her too but surely you can see that having her join us is the worst thing for her. You’d be asking her to cut off all ties with her family and her friends. She’d never be able to become a doctor or settle down with someone and have kids and you know how much that means to her. Even if she did give it up, could you really live with yourself knowing that you’re the reason she’d sacrifice all that? She’d end up hating you for it.”

“I get it!” Taehyung snapped. “I’ll drop it just forget I said anything.” But when Taehyung met Jungkook’s eyes he knew that they both felt the same way and he was more determined than ever to keep Sam in his life.

 

* * *

 

**0300 GMT ~~> >~~Southend-On-Sea, UK**

Sam lay in bed, wide awake as tears dripped slowly down her cheeks. The thick curtains covering the glass door out to the balcony blocked any light from finding its way into the room. She had officially lied to the police for some people she hardly knew. Her brother was missing. She was stuck in England until the people she’d thought were her friends decided that they wanted to take her somewhere else and, despite the fact that they’d basically kidnapped her and forced her to lie to the police for them, Sam kept having to remind herself that these people weren’t her friends. It was so easy to forget that once they were done protecting her they’d just vanish from her life and the thought of never seeing Taehyung’s boxy grin or never hearing Jungkook’s shy little laugh again made her heart ache. She even felt miserable about never again having the late night heart-to-hearts with Yoongi.

That wasn’t them. Sam told herself, time and time again. Those people you knew don’t exist. These people infiltrated your life and lied to you for months. A fresh torrent of tears dripped from her eyes and she rolled onto her side, curling into a ball and sobbing quietly at the loss of the three best friends she’d ever had.

A knock sounded at the door and Sam fell silent, hoping that whoever it was would go away. When the knock came again she wiped her eyes frantically and rolled out of bed, praying that the darkness would hide her puffy face. She pulled open the door to find Yoongi, illuminated by the dim lights of the hallway. “Sorry for waking you.” He said quickly. “I just got word that your mother will be here soon and I figured you’d want to know… Have you been crying?”

“Don’t pretend like you care.” Sam croaked tiredly. “Thank you for telling me about my mother though.” She went to close the door but Yoongi slipped past her and into the room before she could lock him out.

“Why were you crying?” His deep voice rung through the darkness.

“Yoongi, just because you’ve been hired to keep me safe doesn’t mean we have to have these conversations in the middle of the night about our feelings. You’re not Peter.”

Yoongi sighed and Sam could make out his dark figure moving to sit on the bed. “That’s why you’re crying, isn’t it? Because I’m not Peter, Jungkook isn’t Justin and Taehyung isn’t Jack.”

Sam gave up and sat down beside Yoongi. He’d always been able to read her, at least that hadn’t changed. “When you were Peter, you told me that you and I were more alike than you’d ever care to admit, is that still true?”

“It is, I’m a lot more like him than you think. I may have faked my name and a few other trivial details but our friendship was never pretend. I was honest with you where it counted, Sam.”

“That doesn’t make anything better.” She whispered into the dark. “You’re all still going to leave when my family isn’t in danger anymore and I’m not stupid, I know I’ll never see any of you again.”

His breath hitched and she didn’t have to see his face to know that he was looking at her. “Would you want to see us again?”

“I don’t know.”

“If there was a way to make sure we never left you, would you do it?” His voice lowered nervously and he moved in close enough for her to feel his breath on the side of her face.

“How much would that take? I know you guys aren’t from some kind of security company, you’re something else.”

“We’re assassins, Sam.” He said bluntly. “We kill and don’t think twice about it, we never stay in one place longer than we have to and every single day our lives are at risk. We have no families or loved ones because they are weaknesses we cannot afford to have. Would you really want people like us in your life?”

The ease at which he said those words numbed Sam to her core.  _ Assassins _ …

Yoongi sighed and the bedsheets rustled as he moved away from her. “That’s what I thought.”

The sound of a phone buzzing saved them both from the sudden tenseness in the air. Yoongi pulled a small flip-phone from his pocket and answered it without looking to see who had called. “Suga.”

The person on the other line said a few words and, in the dim light the phone was casting upon his face, Sam saw his lips stretch into a relieved smile. He closed the phone with a snap and his hand found hers in the dark. 

“Your mother is here, and she’s brought good news.”


End file.
